The Existential Issue of the 2024 Election

The real question of this election, regardless of its outcome, is why millions of people, a substantial portion of the American electorate, voted for Donald Trump. Now I can already read the comments and hear the voices in my head saying it’s because Trump supporters are racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, etc. Not only is such a statement, and the views it entails, extremely elitist and condescending, but it fails to tackle the reality of Trump’s rise. To echo the view of the famed liberal commentator Chris Hedges: “Trump is not the disease; he is the symptom.” In other words, Donald Trump’s political rise is not the existential issue, the existential issue of our time is the economic and social conditions that gave rise to such a figure. By “existential,” I mean a crisis that threatens the very core of American society, democracy and stability. Such a view might be heretical on this campus, but it is the harsh reality.

So, what are the economic conditions that contributed to Trump’s rise? To be overly simplistic, there are the fruits of globalization. The American industrial base has shrunk since the 1990s, largely due to the reckless free trade policies of both the Republican and Democratic parties, such as NAFTA and the WTO, with the WTO’s flaws only worsening with China’s accession in 2001. The American industrial worker was effectively screwed, competing against others from across the world for a mere fraction of the wage there earned. The result was devastating, to put it mildly. Entire communities were reduced to post-apocalyptic states, with factories closing and the hopes and dreams of many being shattered as the fentanyl crisis worsened such pain. When Wall Street faced the 2007 crash, it was bailed out at the taxpayer’s expense while Main Street suffered. Does this sound like a free and fair market? Meanwhile, political and corporate elites, insulated from these hardships in their coastal enclaves, turned a blind eye to their suffering—neither party daring to challenge the free trade orthodoxy. That is, until Trump.

Several social issues within the American landscape also contributed to Trump’s rise. The cultural war going on in this country, particularly the attack on the groups that are often termed “conservative Christians,” contributed. The unrelenting attack on people who hold differing views of morality on topics such as sexuality and gender fueled mass discontent. For millions of Americans, the categories of their reality were altered overnight, and more importantly, if they didn’t conform to such an alternation, they were reputationally slaughtered. The same voices that preach tolerance for all are sometimes the quickest to silence or cancel those with differing views, exposing the illiberalism among some so called liberals. Perhaps, instead of scolding and discriminating against these people, we should acknowledge their God-given rights to these opinions, for the cornerstone of a liberal society is tolerance—especially for those you disagree with. These disaffected people, many of whom are educated and intelligent, are rallying behind Trump. It’s not because they are unaware of his many flaws. On the contrary, they know the 2020 election wasn’t rigged in terms of vote stealing. They know that Trump is a carnival barker. But for them, the alternative is far worse.

Now, why care about this existential issue? The answer is quite simple: the resentment and anger that led to Trump’s rise isn’t going away after he departs the scene, even if he loses the 2024 election. On the contrary, it’s likely to get even worse. What if another using Trump’s same message, a skilled orator, military general, or war hero with far greater intelligence, enters the political arena? Such resentment could be the seeds for his political ascendancy and the destruction of our Democratic Republic or whatever is left of it. Perhaps an American Caesar is on the menu; time will tell, but one thing is certain: unless this existential issue is realized, we are in deep trouble as a country and civilization. For the fire of Lady Liberty may be extinguished.

The stakes of our times couldn’t be higher. Americans are increasingly dying in large numbers from diseases of despair, with the CDC reporting that in 2022 over 109,000 overdose deaths occured due to fentanyl and synthetic opioids primarily hitting depressed areas of former manufacturing hubs. Home prices and the cost of liv- ing have skyrocketed. According to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, the median home price in this country increased by 54 percent from 2015 to 2023. Wage growth recently has been depressed at levels beyond comprehension. According to data from the Economic Policy Institute (EPI), between 1979 and 2021, real wages for the median U.S. worker grew only 17.5 percent, while productivity rose by 62.7 percent. Inflation caused by reckless government spending often directed towards corporate welfare only accelerating this trend.

We need a movement to solve this existential issue that inspires the hope and aspirations of the American people—a movement not of blue America or red America but the United States of America to save this country. God bless you, and God bless the United States of America!